All Is Fair In Love And War
by writteninhaste
Summary: ON HIATUS. A new member is assigned to SG1. Most don't think she should be there. But what is it about her that makes a normally miled mannered archeologist hate her so? Rated T for safety.
1. Chapter 1

**ALL IS FAIR IN LOVE AND WAR**

_Chapter 1 – Welcome to the dance_

"What?!?" the cry reverberated around the halls of the SGC. Personnel in the immediate vicinity turned to look at the closed office door of Colonel Jonathan 'Jack' O'Neill. As the door handle began to turn, they scattered. A pissed off Jack O'Neill was about as safe to cross as a heard of marauding elephants.

As he marched towards the office of his CO – General George Hammond, men and woman jumped aside to avoid getting in his way. Eye contact was avoided at all cost and several of the scientists were seen ducking into supply closets in an attempt to evade an encounter with the fuming colonel. He rapped on the office door barely waiting for the cursory, "Come in" before swinging the door open. Major General George Hammond, commander of the SGC looked up from his desk to see his 2IC clutching a piece of paper so hard he was beginning to crease it. He stared up into a pair of angry eyes and set face.

"Is there something I can help you with Colonel?" His 2IC, practically threw the piece of paper down onto the desk,

"I was wondering if you could explain this, Sir?"

Hammond looked down at the offending note and winced internally. It was a memo – unusual in itself since Jack O'Neill was famous for never reading his memos. In fact, General Hammond had been almost counting on his _not_ reading this one; it would have meant that by the time he found out about it he would not be in a position to object. Of course this would have to be the one memo Jack O'Neill _actually _read. Hammond spoke calmly to the irate Colonel in front of him. "I think it is pretty self explanatory Colonel."

A muscle twitched in the other man's jaw, "Sir you can't honestly be telling me you agree with this?"

"That is exactly what I'm telling you Colonel, in fact it was partly my idea. Ever since the Stargate programme was disclosed, the British government has been asking – as one of this countries closest allies on Earth – for a more active role in the Stargate programme and –"

"For crying out loud we've already given them their own team what more do they want?"

Hammond chose to ignore the outburst, "And Doctor Jackson has been complaining that not enough personnel are devoted to his department. He claims he needs more help in his research. This was seen by the President and the Joint Chiefs to be a solution to both those problems."

"So they assigned a James Bond wannabe. With all due respect Sir –"

"This topic is not up for discussion Colonel. You will be fully briefed as to the reasons behind this decision in two weeks time, along with the other members of your team. I will expect you to wear full dress uniform and to conduct yourself in a manner becoming of Air Force Officer. Is that understood?"

"Yes Sir. But –"

"This conversation is over Colonel. Dismissed."

Looking back on the conversation, Jack O'Neill – USAF Colonel, 2IC of the SGC and leader of SG-1 winced. His attitude had not been one to endear himself to his CO. He still thought the idea of having an MI6 agent on base ridiculous, but he had no say in the matter. He guessed that Hammond wanted to use this meeting to get him on board but he doubted that would happen. This was a military base; they needed military personnel not 'secret agents'. He sighed and glanced over at the members of his team who were present.

Doctor Daniel Jackson was seated on the other side of the table, the team's official diplomat (as well as archaeologist, anthropologist, linguist etc). He was ludicrously smart and possessed a heart of gold. Jack smirked slightly as the young man took a sip from his ever-present cup of coffee, whilst simultaneously pushing his glasses further up his nose as he read the briefing file. Jack's lay closed on the table in front of him.

His gaze shifted to the man seated beside him. Teal'c, the ex-first prime of Apophis, was wearing his usual stoic expression, eyes closed as he meditated to pass the time. Feeling his CO's gaze upon him he turned opening his eyes, "Is something the matter O'Neill?"

Shaking his head, Jack focused on the empty seat opposite him. The seat should have been occupied by his 2IC – Major Samantha Carter. Unfortunately, she was with the Tok'ra helping them fix something or other and wouldn't be back for another three weeks. Jack sighed. He missed her, he missed her smile and the way she would laugh at his poor jokes. He missed he techno-babble and hanging out in her lab. He missed the way she would frown at him if she thought he was not paying enough attention in briefings and the way her eyes would light up when she found a new piece of alien technology to play with. He absent-mindedly picked up a pen and started tapping it against the tabletop, his mind lost in thoughts of a woman who meant more to him than she was supposed to.

He was shaken from his reverie by the sound of a manila file being slapped closed. Both he and Teal'c looked up to see a scowling Daniel Jackson. Realising he'd drawn attention to himself; Daniel blushed, "Sorry" he muttered, "I was just wondering how long we were going to sit here for." His eyes flicked towards the closed door of General Hammond's office.

Jack winced in sympathy. Whilst Teal'c had been permitted to wear BDUs Daniel had been forced to wear a suit and he looked about as comfortable as Jack felt in his uniform. "Don't worry Space Monkey wont be long now. This briefing was meant to start 30 minutes ago and you know Hammond doesn't like to keep people waiting."

As if on cue, the door to the office opened and General George Hammond walked out. At once all three men rose to their feet, standing respectfully as their CO made his way to his seat at the head of the table. A greying man in an ordinary black suit followed him and at the General's request took the seat normally occupied by Major Carter. Jack frowned; everything about the man was average. His face was one, which you would look at one and then forget the moment you looked away. His haircut was short but not too short, his suit was well cut but not obviously expensive or cheap, he had no distinguishing features, nothing to make him stand out. He was the sort of man who blended into the background, who everyone saw but no one realised was there.

Once they were all seated General Hammond made the introductions, "Gentlemen this is Mr Robert Jones, head of operations for MI6. Mr Jones this is Colonel Jack O'Neill, Doctor Daniel Jackson, and Teal'c."

Mr Jones nodded to them, "It is an honour to meet three of the members of the infamous SG-1. I only wish I could have had the pleasure of meeting Major Carter also, but I understand she is unavailable at the moment so I suppose that cannot be helped." Jack noted with curiosity than even his voice was unremarkable. There was almost no trace of an accent. Though there was a hint of Britain in a few of the words, for the most part his voice was again one you heard but could not recall. Nodding his acknowledgements, Jack turned his attention back to the General.

"As you are all aware. It has been decided that, in light of the agreement made with the British government, one of MI6's agents would be assigned to the SGC. We are here today, because that agent has now been chosen, and will be joining us shortly. Colonel O'Neill a copy of this agent's personnel file will be given to you at the end of this briefing. I'm afraid that neither Doctor Jackson nor Teal'c have the clearance to view this file. However Mr Jones will now tell you that information which it is permissible for you to know."

As the General finished speaking, attention focused the man sitting next to him. "Agent Barnes, has been with us for 3 years. Aged 24 years old, she has a BA from Oxford and is fluent in a range of languages. One of the reasons she was selected was that she would therefore be able to assist Doctor Jackson with his research," Daniel's ears perked up at this, but Jack frowned.

"I was under the impression that we would be receiving an agent who would benefit the SGC as a whole, someone who would be expected to join an exploration team. From what you've described your agent hardly seems suitable. She appears to have no field experience, a narrow field of expertise and to be quite honest nothing that we do not already have."

To his surprise Mr Jones smiled. A thin icy smile, combined with a calculating look. "You are right Colonel. The woman I have described would be of almost no benefit to the SGC. The most she could do would be to file papers behind a desk. In which case she might as well have stayed in London. So I will be frank with you Colonel and with you gentlemen," he said nodding to the other men in the room, "What I just told you was only the official 'bio' as it were for Agent Barnes. This is the truth. Agent Emeline Barnes is 24 years of age. She has officially worked for our organisation since she left Oxford University with her BA in Egyptology at the age of 21. She speaks a total of 8 different languages – both Modern and Ancient – and is well versed in Classical Civilisation.

"Though she did not officially work for us until then, she began her training when she was recruited at the age of 19 whilst she was studying. She was chosen from a range of candidates and on the surface she was probably the least promising. Young, naïve and idealistic she was nothing that we look for in an agent. She wore her heart on her sleeve and lived more in her imagination that in the real world. Nevertheless there was something in her which caught the attention of our head-hunters. Since that time, she has transformed into one of the best agents I have ever seen. She is dedicated and loyal, with a level of competence I have rarely seen in an agent so young. To become a field agent at her age is almost unheard of, but to be honest she would be wasted anywhere else. She is a skilled marksman, diplomat, and actress. She has never failed to complete an objective and does not turn down assignments or question orders. Her last three years have been spent mostly on assignments I'm not at liberty to discuss with you. But I can assure you gentlemen she is one of the best. We would give you nothing less. Agent Barnes is a solution to a problem."

Daniel seemed impressed, if a little perturbed by the nature of the speech, but Hammond could tell both Jack and Teal'c were reserving judgement. "Well I think it's time we met Agent Barnes," he nodded to the SF stationed by the door, "show her in."

As the young women walked into the briefing room Jack was hit with a strong sense of déjà vu. He remembered back to the first time he had met then Captain Samantha Carter—she had walked in full of attitude and with a chip on her shoulder the size of Alaska. He noticed that this time it was almost the opposite. At 5'8" Emeline was shorter than the Major though she appeared taller as she was wearing heals. She was wearing a simple black skirt suit with a silver cross, hung round her neck. Her thick chestnut hair was laced with gold and copper and pulled back in a high ponytail. Her eyes were large and dark; brown with flecks of amber in the iris. Her skin was a creamy colour with a hint of summer tan, high cheek bones accentuating a full mouth. Her beauty should have been soft and sensual but instead it held an edge of something cold and hard. A mouth, which should have offered pleasure, gave a hint of pain. Eyes that held warmth on the surface were marred by an icy depth, which threatened to grow and intensify until it filled her gaze.

Mr Jones stood turning towards her, "Agent Barnes"

"Sir."

"This is General George Hammond, Colonel Jack O'Neill, Doctor Daniel Jackson, and Mr Teal'c"

Agent Barnes nodded. "Sirs."

She moved towards the seat indicated by the General with a grace and elegance, which spoke of almost perfect balance. Silence grew in the room, all eyes except those of Mr Jones were fixed on the new comer, her gaze meeting theirs calmly.

Her eyes connected with Colonel O'Neill's and whatever she saw there caused one eyebrow to arch gracefully. Three of the men were reminded forcibly of Teal'c. Her attention shifted to her boss, "What did you tell them?"

The men of the SGC were surprised by her tone, friendly but guarded, respectful despite the lack of formal address, yet her words held a sense of familiarity between the pair. Jones' mouth curved in a wry smile. "Well, I tried to tell them the 'official story' but they didn't by it. I told them the truth _cherie_."

Eyebrows all around the table shot upwards at that sentence. Daniel's gaze met Jack's before flicking to the two agents seated at the table and then back again. Teal'c's eyebrow had yet to leave its perch high up on his forehead. "The truth is a dangerous toy _mon seigneur_."

Though she had an obvious English accent, her voice caressed the French words, sounding as natural as her own native tongue. Daniel felt his stare inexplicably drawn to the young woman seated at the end of the table. There was something about her, that small smile that played along her lips seemed to hold the weight of years.

Everything spoke of a enigma, one who was closed off and secretive. For some reason he was reminded forcibly of Jack—a man with a history he cannot talk about and issues he wont. This woman was only 24 and yet there was already a weight to her gaze. At her age there should still be that innocent light in her eyes but from what her boss had said, she'd lost that light years ago. Suddenly, a question sprung to mind, one he was surprised had not occurred to him before. "Um General not to be rude, but what are Teal'c and I doing here. I mean I can understand Jack's presence he's your 2IC and should therefore meet new personnel but why us. I mean I could have met Agent Barnes at any time, especially if she will be helping me with my research. I'm sorry but it all seems a bit ...odd."

General Hammond nodded, "I understand your concerns Doctor Jackson, but there is a very good reason why you are all here. As you know Agent Barnes will be joining one of the exploration teams, and in the light of Major Carter's absence I have arranged for Agent Barnes to temporarily join SG-1—you will show her the ropes Colonel."

A snapping sound was heard from the end of the table. All eyes swivelled towards the noise. "Are you alright Agent Barnes?"

Barnes nodded, hand swiftly covering the broken pieces of pencil lying on the table. Daniel frowned. The young agent's composure had not slipped once since she had arrived. He wondered what had caused her to break the pencil.

General Hammond looked once more around the table. "Very well. This meeting is adjourned. SG-1 if you could please give Agent Barnes a tour of the base and then show her to her quarters. Before conducting the basic training assessments."

"Yes Sir."

"Very good. Dismissed."


	2. Chapter 2

**ALL IS FAIR IN LOVE AND WAR**

_Chapter 2—The devil you know_

45 minutes later saw one Colonel, one Jaffa, one archaeologist and one MI6 agent standing in the corridor outside of the on base shooting range. The red light was on, signalling it was currently occupied and Daniel and Teal'c had deigned to wait with Jack and Agent Barnes in an attempt to get to know her a bit better. Whilst Jack still seemed to be a bit mistrustful of her, Teal'c and Daniel had already decided that she was 'ok'. Daniel had engaged in an enthusiastic conversation with her about Medieval Britain as they had toured the base. He had been pleased to see by the depth of her knowledge on the subject and her apparent willingness to help him with his research. Jack had watched with patient resignation whilst Teal'c had listened to the conversation with fascination.

They were stood there discussing the weather in England (of all things) when the door to the range opened and SG-3 filed out. Reynolds nodded to the three members of SG-1 before his eyes flicked appraisingly over Agent Barnes. Misinterpreting the gesture, the British agent scowled drawing herself up to her full height, her expression daring the marines to comment. Jack smirked slightly to himself—maybe he would have to rethink the whole no chip on her shoulder policy. Once the marines had left Jack waved an arm in the direction of the open door, "Shall we Agent?"

The young woman nodded and slipped around the Colonel into the room. Daniel and Teal'c turned to go. "We'll see you later Jack. Can you ask her to stop by my office once you're done here? There are some things I want to talk to her about." Daniel grinned as he said it, the smile evident in his voice. Jack smirked, "You want to talk shop Danny?"

Daniel grinned, "Something like that."

Jack watched them walk away for a moment before moving into the shooting range himself and closing the door. He turned to see Agent Barnes leaning against the opposite wall and looking at him thoughtfully. He made a vague movement with his hand, "Well Agent lets see what you've got." she nodded and moved over to the shooting stations. "You can call me Li you know. Most people do."

"Li?"

"Short for Emeline."

"Really?"

She shrugged, "Better than Millie."

Jack snorted, "Your boss seemed to have an interesting name for you."

To his curiosity she blushed slightly, "Yes well…"

_That's a distinctive non-answer_ he thought, but did not press the subject. He handed her a gun, moving back as he pressed the button to set up a new target. They ran through a series of guns and series of target types, ranging from bulls-eyes to human outlines. He watched with mounting respect as she stood, firing shot after shot, perfectly balanced in her two inch heels.

After 30 minutes he called a stop, walking over to where she stood, as the target data began to upload onto the screen behind her. She shifted slightly so he could see the screen read out. He looked at it, then frowned and moved closer running through the data again. He could feel her cool stare upon him as he read through the data for a second time. Frowning slightly he turned towards her, "You were almost 100 accurate every time." Jack knew there was a challenge to his voice but he did not care. He wanted to know just what kind of woman stood before him, though he was getting a pretty good idea. To her credit, Barnes met his gaze without flinching. She shrugged, "What can I say Colonel, I'm good at what I do."

"You're a sniper."

She held his gaze. He watched as the shutter slid into place behind her eyes leaving them dead and unfeeling. "Amongst other things."

"Why?"

Her face was unreadable, but then her lips gave a bitter little twist. "I met a man who loved to go a-hunting. I wanted to impress him so I learnt to. But from the start I learnt I hated hunting. But it didn't matter, 'cuz I had a job to do." her voice was bland, stating the facts, no regret for the life she'd left behind.

Jack felt his heart go out to young woman standing before him. At age 24 she had already lived for three years in a world he had not experienced until he was 30. Even then he'd been given a chance at a normal life—he'd had Charlie and Sarah. He'd known what it was to be happy. This girl looked as though she had never been truly happy. He remembered back to Mr Jones' words in the briefing room. The man had almost revelled in the idea of her transformation—the way she had been dragged from a world of dreams and ideals into a world of violence and lies. Jack felt a sudden anger burn within him. Whoever had recruited her had stolen her youth. She should have grown up to be like Daniel. Safe behind the ivory walls of academia, lost in the innocence of youth. In her place stood a hardened young woman, with a darkness in her eyes.

She seemed to sense his emotions because she let out a sudden bark of harsh laughter. "Don't feel sorry for me Colonel, like I said I'm good at what I do. You needn't worry that I'll suddenly develop a conscience on you. You give me a gun and tell me where to shoot and I'll hit whatever you damn well want me to. But don't pity me Colonel. I chose what I wanted to be."

Jack nodded, his face carefully neutral. "Daniel wanted to see you."

She nodded, "Then I'd better not keep him waiting. Colonel." With that she swept out of the room leaving Jack staring at the figure she'd been aiming at. There was only one hole where all the bullets had gone through—right between the eyes. Abruptly he turned on his heal and left the room. He needed to talk to Teal'c.

* * *

"You wanted to see me Doctor Jackson?"

Daniel looked up from the tablet he was transcribing. He broke into a smile as he saw Agent Barnes standing in the doorway. He was reminded of Sam on her first few visits to his office—of course Sam had hovered slightly with excited energy, Agent Barnes just looked at him expectantly. Still smiling he moved around his desk, "Agent Barnes please come in."

The young woman returned his smile, eyes crinkling slightly. "Please call me Li. Agent Barnes seems so formal."

"Then I'm Daniel." He held out his hand to her and she took it. Her handshake was firm and confident, her palm slightly calloused from years of manual labour. She moved over to the tablet he was translating. "What are you working on?"

Breaking into yet another smile, Daniel strode enthusiastically back to his work bench, "Well you see—"

* * *

Teal'c's eyebrow rose steadily further up his forehead as he watched Jack pace back and forth inside his quarters. He had been in the middle of Kel-No-Reem when O'Neill had rapped sharply on his door before flinging himself into the room. Teal'c had yet to discern the reason behind the interruption. Rising from his seat on the floor, he planted himself firmly in Jack's path causing the man to come to an abrupt halt.

"You have yet to enlighten me as to the cause of your agitation O'Neill." Jack stopped abruptly before flopping down heavily into a chair and running a hand over his face. When he still did not say anything Teal'c spoke, "Is your current state at all related to the arrival of Agent Barnes?." Jack peered up at his friend through his fingers. "She's too young Teal'c, much too young."

Teal'c raised an inquisitive eyebrow, "Are there not other personnel on the base O'Neill who are of the same age?"

Jack shook his head, standing up sharply. "That's not the point Teal'c. I don't mean she's too young to work here. I mean she's too young to have already become what she has."

Seeing Teal'c's confusion he continued, "At 24 she has already become what I am at over 40. She's jaded T' she's seen way more than anyone her age should have. Hell she's probably done more than anyone should. Here eyes are dead Teal'c, there is no-one home, no emotion there. Oh I don't doubt she could lie, put feeling into them if she chose to but it wouldn't be real." he sighed, "I told her she was a sniper, she said 'amongst other things'. I didn't realize until she left the room what she really is. She's an assassin. A cold blooded assassin. Do we really want someone like that at the SGC? Someone who can kill and feel nothing?"

Teal'c listened calmly to the tirade. He was puzzled as to why O'Neill was reacting this way. He had noticed Agent Barnes' seeming inability to portray emotion—whilst she had been animated in her discussion with DanielJackson he'd had not witnessed the true joy and happiness either DanielJackson or Major Carter expressed when talking about their fields of expertise. He had thought this a benefit. Here was a warrior who would perform her duty without her judgment being clouded by personal emotion. She would never delay carrying out an order due to conflicting feelings—as Teal'c knew Colonel O'Neill feared Doctor Jackson or at times Major Carter would do. He was about to point this out when Jack spoke again, "She's young enough to be my daughter T'"

And that was the crux of the matter. For all of O'Neill's apparent concerns over the sociopathic nature of his temporary team member, the root of the problem was in his belief that the life this woman had chosen was too harsh for her—not that he thought she could not handle it, but rather that she should not have to. Jack's paternal instinct was kicking in and he could not understand why—it was unsettling for him.

"Agent Barnes has already proved herself a competent warrior to her government O'Neill. Should you not give her the chance to do the same here?" Jack said nothing,

"I understand that you wish to shelter her from the life she has chosen. You were once a father and when you see this young woman who, as you said is young enough to be your daughter, you long to return to her the innocence you believe to have been taken from her. You cannot do this. She has chosen to walk this path and you must let her do so. The only thing you can do is to stop her sliding further into the darkness she is already wrapped in. I am a father too and I know that I would never wish to see in Ryac's eyes what I have seen in Agent Barnes. But at the same time I believe it is that which has kept her alive. You told me yourself that when you first met DanielJackson, there was no light in your eyes, but years of working with people who care about you has taught you to laugh again. I do not believe it is too late for Agent Barnes—she needs merely to be taught how to smile again."

Jack stared at the large Jaffa. Those had to be the most words he had ever spoken outside of one of those pep talks he sometimes gave to un-converted Jaffa. He groaned pushing himself up from the chair he had sunk back into part way through his speech. "Maybe you're right T'. We'll see anyway. Maybe she's still human after all."

Teal'c nodded gravely as he opened the door for his friend. "Indeed. Goodbye O'Neill."

"See ya Teal'c." With that, Colonel Jack O'Neill walked out into the florescent-lit hallways of the SGC.


	3. Chapter 3

**ALL IS FAIR IN LOVE AND WAR**

_Chapter 3— Ours is not to reason why_

Doctor Janet Fraiser marched swiftly into her infirmary. The sight that met her eyes stopped her in her tracks. SG-1, temporarily minus one major and plus one agent, were seated on four different gurneys.

Teal'c as always appeared to be uninjured, but the rest of the team was another matter. Daniel's face was covered in small abrasions and a bruise was blossoming along his jaw. Jack had a crude bandage around his thigh and his knuckles were raw and bloodied as if he'd punched a brick wall—which was not that far from the truth.

Li though she was another story. Looking at her Janet winced. Whilst the three men were all sat upright she was lying down. Her face was pale, and her uniform was ripped in a multitude of places. Her eyes were closed, but from the slight grimace of pain on her face Janet knew she was not unconscious. Moving quickly over to Li's side Janet began to examine her, noticing the young woman winced slightly with pain as she did so. Without stopping her examination Janet spoke to the Colonel, "What happened?"

"Friendly natives? Not so friendly. They took a real shine to Barnes though."

Li snorted then winced as pain shot through her ribs, "Personally Colonel, I wouldn't mind a bit less shine next time." she let out a gasp as Janet gently pressed her ribs,

"Doctor!"

Janet frowned at her patient who quickly subsided. Jack grinned. Janet picked up a clip board and started scribbling notes on it, "So how did you receive these injuries?" noticing Li was attempting to sit up Janet pressed down on her shoulder forcing her to remain horizontal.

Jack shifted in an attempt to get comfortable, "We were fine at first, Daniel made the introductions, Teal'c did his 'I no longer serve false gods' bit and me and Barnes tried to look impressive. We followed them to their village, had started in on the polite chit chat and that's when things went a bit pear shaped." He grimaced at the memory, "We thought everything was fine since - they hadn't seemed to have had a problem with Barnes being part of the group - but she hadn't said anything yet, so we didn't realize that they had an issue with women talking without permission—apparently it's a crime. So when Barnes' here asked about their culture she found herself being hauled off to jail. We tried to explain it was just a misunderstanding but they weren't having any of it."

Teal'c stood and moved closer to the group, "Indeed, they did seem most resistant to any form of reason. It took us many hours to convince them to let us see Agent Barnes by which time she had already been subjected to their hospitality. I most sincerely regret not reaching you sooner Emeline."

Li smiled at the Jaffa's attempt at humour, she had tried to get him to call her Li but he seemed insistent on calling her Emeline, stating it was her name and therefore what he would call her.

"Don't sweat it Teal'c nothing you could have done." her voice came out through gritted teeth as Janet's hand found a particularly nasty bruise.

Jack continued to explain what had happened on the planet as Janet finished with Li and moved on to her other patients. Daniel and Teal'c were both declared free to go, once Janet had cleaned the archaeologist's cuts and after assessing, that the wound on Jack's leg was not deep and needed no stitches released him too. Seeing the hopeful look on Li's face Janet shook her head, "Sorry Agent, but I want to get some x-rays of your ribs. I doubt they're broken, they just feel bruised but I want to make sure in any case."

Resigned to a few more unpleasant hours in the infirmary Li nodded, before looking at the men in the room. "You guys go ahead, run free. No need for you to stay here. I wont impose my company upon you"

"Good." All eyes turned to Daniel who had been silent since they returned from the planet "Because personally I'd rather not be near you right now. Assassin." With that parting shot he swept out of the room. Janet gaped at this un-Daniel-like behaviour.

Jack looked at Li, her face had paled and her eyes were closed. He grimaced and lightly touched her shoulder "Are you sure, I mean can wait for you if you want?"

Li shook her head eyes still closed, "No it's okay sir, I'll be in my office after the good doctor has finished with me. I need to get started on my report." Jack nodded to both her and Janet, then left the infirmary. He needed to talk to a certain archaeologist.

Janet looked down at the woman whom she had begun to form a friendship with since she had arrived two weeks ago. "If you don't mind me asking, what was that about? I mean I've never seen Daniel act like that. And what did he mean, calling you 'assassin'."

Li opened her eyes and Janet detected a hint of sadness there which was quickly masked. "We had to fight our way off the planet. Apparently my 'crime' was punishable by death and they weren't about to let me go so Colonel O'Neill decided to spring me from jail. The locals didn't take kindly to that. Turns out they had staff weapons, as we ran they opened fire. The Colonel was covering our six but then he managed to cut his leg open on something—I didn't see what. Daniel moved in to get him and I took over covering us. I guess Daniel saw a side of me then that he didn't like."

Janet frowned, she did not fully understand what the young woman was telling her but decided not to ask any further questions—after all they still barely new each other. Making sure her patient was comfortable for the time being, she left to make sure everything was set up for the x-rays.

* * *

Jack stormed into Daniel's office, closing the door forcibly behind him. Daniel looked up sharply from his notes, eyebrows coming together with an almost audible click.

"What?" he demanded harshly.

Jack scowled, "That's precisely what I would like to ask you?"

"What are you talking about Jack?" Daniel asked.

"You. In the infirmary. You were completely out of line." Jack's voice was rising with each word and he had to make a constant effort not to shout.

"Really? I didn't think so." The young archaeologist glared petulantly at the colonel.

"Obviously. But seriously, where do you get off calling Barnes an assassin?" Jack left hand was clenched into a fist on the table

"Same place you do apparently."

"Huh?" Jack blinked at the reply, he honestly could not work out what Daniel was talking about.

"You said it first, not me." Daniel stopped glaring and turned his attention back to his notes. He couldn't understand, why Jack wasn't as upset as he was.

"Where did you hear that?"

"Teal'c."

"My hasn't he been chatty." Jack's sarcasm was evident in his voice.

"Yeah well that's beside the point isn't it. If you can call her an assassin so can I. Only difference is I was honest enough to tell her to her face."

"That was completely different?"

"Oh yea? How?"

"Because I didn't mean it like you. You said that to hurt her, I said it because I was concerned. Why the hell did you say that Daniel, it's not like you?" Jack sighed as he finally relaxed his stance and settled his weight against the doorjamb.

"Because I saw what she did back on that planet. She just stood there shooting, with that look of … nothing on her face. At least when you or Sam or Teal'c shoot there's something, anger, fear, desperation ...something! But for her? Nothing. She just stood there picking them off one by one. And that's another thing, when you and Sam shoot its normally a spray of bullets, a warning more than an attempt to hit specific targets, except when it's enemy Jaffa. If they're innocents you try not to hurt to many of them. She didn't. She just dropped them. No matter who they were. Men, women it didn't matter. If it was firing a weapon she shot it." Daniel was breathing heavily by now, his fist was clenched on the table in front of him. What had started off as a reasoned explanation had morphed into a heated tirade.

Jack sighed, letting the tension ease out of his shoulders. "I think you're missing one very important detail Daniel."

"Oh really and what's that?"

"That she didn't shoot to kill."

"What are you talking about Jack? Those people were dropping like flies"

"Yeah they were, but that's all you saw Daniel. What you didn't see was the fact that they kept moving after they'd fallen. She shot to wound Daniel. Just enough to make them drop their weapons. I was watching Daniel, it didn't even look like she hit major arteries on most of them. She simply made them stop firing at us Daniel, that's it." Jack held Daniel's gaze, trying to get the younger man to see his point of view – that what had happened today didn't make Barnes a villain, it just didn't make her a hero.

"Forget it Jack. I know what I saw. It doesn't matter whether she killed them or not. She still felt nothing when she shot them. You should feel something Jack, you told me that. She felt nothing. She's a sociopath. And in my eyes, she's still an assassin."

Daniel turned away from Jack and started sorting out the papers lying on his workbench. "Anyway it doesn't matter. Sam's coming back tomorrow and then I wont have to deal with Agent Barnes except to hand her research notes."

Jack winced, this probably wasn't the best time to break the news to Daniel but he might as well, "Actually Daniel that may not be true. General Hammond asked me to consider having Barnes as a permanent member of SG-1. He said we appeared to work well together, and we could use an extra pair of eyes for when you and Carter are working on rocks and doohickeys." His attempt to lighten the mood failed. Daniel met his gaze with steely eyes.

"Do we get a say in this?"

"Well I was gonna talk about it to you after Carter got back tomorrow. But to be honest Danny, the General has pretty much already made up his mind."

"I see. Well if you don't mind Jack I've got a lot of work to do." Jack sighed, this did not bode well,

"Just give her a chance Daniel. Get to know her a bit better, maybe you'll find out she's human after all." Leaving his friend to think about it, he left the room.

* * *

The iris swooshed open, revealing the shimmering pale blue light of the event horizon. Smiles broke out in the embarkation room as a familiar figure dressed in green BDUs stepped out into the room. "Welcome home Major Carter. I trust the mission was a success?"

Major Samantha Carter pulled a green ball cap from her head and smiled, "Yes Sir. It's good to be home." she would never admit it, but weeks off world without her team had been slightly lonely—even with an array of 'doohickeys' to play with. She looked past General Hammond and saw the beaming faces of her three team mates—the smile looked oddly out of place on Teal'c's face. Jack moved forward to clap her on the shoulder, "Good to have you back Carter."

He was quickly usurped by Daniel who pulled her into a hug, "Yeah we missed you Sam, it was weird not having you around. There was no one to confuse Jack with techno babble."

Sam suppressed a smile at the indignant "hey" that came from her CO. Her eyes fell on Teal'c who nodded regally in her direction, "Indeed it is most pleasant to have you returned to us Major Carter."

Sam smiled, she'd missed these guys. "Thanks guys, now if you'll excuse me I have to go check in with Janet and then I have a debriefing with General Hammond."

Jack moved to the side, holding out an arm like a theatre usher, "Right you are Major, carry on."

Sam flashed him one of her _for Jack O'Neill_ _Only_ smiles as she moved past him, "Yes Sir."

* * *

Walking into the infirmary, Sam looked for the familiar sight of Janet Fraiser in her white lab coat, clip board in hand, berating some poor airman for trying to leave the infirmary before she gave permission. To her surprise she only struck gold on one of the three. In front of her, back to the door, stood Janet Frasier, wearing lab coat as usual but minus either clipboard or hapless airman.

She was sorting something on a tray before her and did not seem to register Sam's presence. Smiling slightly Sam cleared her throat. Turning swiftly around Janet's face broke into a smile, "Sam you're back. How was it?" she said motioning for her friend to take a seat on one of the gurney's as she pulled the curtains. "It was good. Very enlightening in fact. I've never seen so much Tok'ra technology in one place. I still don't understand why they needed me for any of it but I'm not complaining, it meant I got to play with loads of really cool toys." She smiled, realising as the words left her mouth, that she had possibly spent too much time with one, Jack O'Neill.

Janet echoed her thoughts, "You've been hanging around the Colonel too much."

Sam laughed, "Perhaps."

Janet finished her check up and pulled back the curtain, "You're good to go Sam. Why don't you stop by tonight and say hi to Cassie, she's been dying to see you. Apparently there's this guy …" she let the sentence hang giving Sam a knowing look.

Sam laughed, "I see what I can do. I'll probably stop by around 1930 is that ok?"

"Sure, I'll see you then."

"'k. Bye Janet."

"Bye Sam"

* * *

Sam left the infirmary and made her way to the briefing room. Her briefing with Hammond was short and sweet, the details about the technology she had dealt with would be in her report so there was no need to go into depth right now. The briefing was just wrapping up when there was a knock on the door and Walter stuck his head around the door, "Sorry to interrupt Sir, but the rest of SG-1 are here." Sam looked at the CO of the base in surprise,

"Sir?"

"Just wait Major" Sam frowned slightly and looked towards the door. Her team were now filing in and taking their regular seats, Sam noticed that Daniel was frowning at Jack and that Jack shot an exasperated look in his direction before sitting down and flashing Sam his traditional quirky grin.

"Now Major, I know you're wondering why I have invited the rest of SG-1 to this briefing. The thing is, I want to discuss the option of adding a fifth member to SG-1. As you are aware, an MI6 agent has been assigned to the SGC. During your absence, she acted as stand in on SG-1. Now personally I feel she worked well there, and Colonel O'Neill is inclined to agree with me." Sam's gaze flicked to her CO but he was looking at Hammond.

"I want to her, for the time being, to continue working on SG-1 and see how she fits in with the team as a whole. If it works I will have her assigned permanently to SG-1, if however you or any other members of the team find yourselves unable to work with Agent Barnes, I will find another SG team for her to be on. I do not wish to compromise any team due to a disruption to the team dynamic, but I have a feeling she'll fit right in on SG-1." He looked to Colonel O'Neill for confirmation.

"Personally, I think you're gonna love her Carter. But I might be wrong." He shrugged. "Fraiser likes her," he offered.

"I too second O'Neill's opinion Major Carter, Agent Barnes has proven herself to be a capable warrior, and she seems to understand O'Neill's sense of humour. In the two weeks she has been here I have already begun to admire her skill as both a scholar and a warrior." Sam smiled she was beginning to like the sound of this Agent Barnes and if Janet liked her then she couldn't be all bad.

She looked at Daniel, who shrugged, "I don't like her." he said, uncharacteristically frank, "But that doesn't mean that you wont." Hammond turned to frown at the archaeologist, "Are you saying you will be unable to work with Agent Barnes, Doctor Jackson?"

"No General, I can work with her. I just don't like her." Hammond did not seem entirely satisfied with this answer, and Sam noticed that Jack's scowl had deepened, but he let the matter drop.

"Very well. I suggest you introduce Major Carter to Agent Barnes and we can see if any other problems are likely to arise. Dismissed." The team rose as the General left the room.

"Well Carter what do you say? Wanna meet the new recruit?" Jack asked quirking an eyebrow at his 2IC.

Sam smiled, "Sure Sir."

Daniel interrupted the friendly exchange looking coldly at Jack, "If you don't mind Jack I think I'll skip, I have work to do."

Jack looked like he wanted to argue but thought better of it, "Yeahsureyoubetcha." he closed his eye as Daniel walked out the room, once he'd left he opened them again fighting to keep his face neutral, "So Teal'c, you coming?"

"I am indeed O'Neill. Unlike DanielJackson I am not adverse to spending time in Agent Barnes's company."

"Great lets go."

* * *

As they walked through the halls of the SGC, Sam turned to look at her CO, "Sir what was all that with Daniel?"

Jack winced, he knew this was coming, he opened his mouth to try and explain without tinting her perception of Li when Teal'c spoke. "I believe that DanielJackson is having difficulty accepting the philosophical differences between himself and Agent Barnes."

Sam nodded, mulling things over in her head. She wasn't entirely sure what that meant but she was determined to find out. It was not like Daniel to behave this way and she wanted to find out what it was about this woman that had Daniel so on edge. She was brought from her reverie by sound of Colonel O'Neill tapping of the door frame to an office. She followed him in curious to see the prospective member of the team. Stepping out behind the Colonel, Sam stared.

Before her stood a young woman in her early to mid twenties, dressed in baggy green BDUs, absent mindedly twirling a pencil between her fingers. She smiled when she saw Sam and stepped forward holding out a hand, "You must be Major Carter. I have to say it's an honour to finally meet you, I've read a lot of your work – it was fascinating."

Accepting the proffered Sam smiled, "Thank you"

"Of course," the woman continued, "most of it went straight over my head." she smiled flashing white teeth in a quick grin. Sam instantly smiled back, she could see why Jack liked this woman, she had his sense of humour. Releasing her hand she said,

"You must be Agent Barnes."

The woman nodded, "The name's Emeline but _please_ call me Li." her voice held a hint of smile to it as she mock-glared over at Teal'c.

The stoic Jaffa raised one eyebrow, "If that was a attempt, for me to call you Li, Agent Barnes it will not succeed. Emeline is your given name and I see no reason to call you by anything else."

Li snorted, "Yeah you wouldn't"

"I will chose to ignore that statement."

Sam grinned, "If you're Li, then I'm Sam." she told the other woman

She was rewarded with a small smile, "Deal. You Sam me Li."

Jack smiled a lopsided smile. This was what Daniel did not see. The Li Barnes as opposed to the Agent Barnes. In the two weeks he had known her Jack had seen her gradually smile more each day. Off-world she reverted to the Agent Barnes with the dead eyes, but once back on base, laughter seeped back into them and he began to see glimpses of who she had been before MI6.

He was beginning to wonder if she really was as dead on the inside as he had first believed, or whether it had been her way of warning him what she was capable of. He realized that Barnes and Carter had been talking animatedly whilst he'd been thinking. He smiled to himself; they seemed to have hit it off right away. He tuned into the conversation—motorbikes—that explained a lot. He stood there with Teal'c just watching the two women talk, occasionally adding his two cents to the conversation but in reality perfectly content to watch.

It appeared that the only problem was between her and Daniel. His eyes slid to Carter's face, and for a while he stopped thinking. He loved these stolen moments, times when he could just watch her and people were none the wiser. He watched as the over head lights glinted off her hair and in her eyes. He watched as her cheeks took on a rosy tint as she laughed at something Teal'c had said. She turned to him and blue eyes met brown. Her eyes widened slightly and he quickly buried the emotions she had seen. He looked back up at her, worried he'd made her uncomfortable, but relaxed when he saw a reassuring smile on her lips and a similar look in her eyes. His breath caught in his throat—she was the most beautiful woman he had ever set eyes on. His lips twitched in a secretive smile and she blushed looking down before turning back to Li and what she was saying.

Suddenly Sam looked at her watch and gasped. "I have to go, I promised Janet I would stop by and say hi to Cassie. And I'm already late."

Li laughed, and reached for her papers, as Jack groaned, "So what are you waiting for Carter? Go."

"But I was meant to be working on—"

"Ack! You'll have plenty of time to do that later, you've just got back from weeks of playing with alien doohickeys I think you can wait one evening to play with the Earth ones."

Turning, he pushed his still protesting 2IC out the door, as he left her heard Li ask, "Are they always like this?"

He fought the urge to laugh when Teal'c replied, "Indeed."


	4. Chapter 4

**ALL IS FAIR IN LOVE AND WAR**

_Chapter 4—The path not taken_

"Sir are you sure we should be doing this?" Sam asked nervously as she, Jack and Teal'c started to make their way up a neat gravel drive towards a medium sized white wash bungalow.

Jack looked down at her, "Doing what Major?"

"Just inviting ourselves over like this Sir, I mean we haven't exactly known her all that long."

"What's your point Carter?" Jack asked smiling, he knew Sam was nervous about just dropping in on Li like this but he also had a feeling that the other woman would not care. She'd told them they could stop by whenever they wanted but to be prepared for a degree of mess if they did not call first.

Teal'c raised his trademark eyebrow, "Has not Emeline just moved into these premises, Major Carter? I understood it was Tau'ri custom to congratulate one on such a purchase and to bring a gift."

"Well yes," Sam said, "that's called a house-warming present. Normally people have parties."

Jack rang the doorbell. The conversation being carried on behind him was interrupted, as the door swung open to reveal a slightly surprised looking Agent Barnes. "Colonel! Sam, Teal'c. What are you doing here?" she stood aside and held the door open, motioning them all to come in. Jack noticed with interest, that despite her previous insistence that it was alright to stop by, she seemed rather nervous at having them there.

"Well Barnes, you said you'd just moved in, and that things were pretty hectic. So we thought we'd stop by and see how things are looking." Jack said. The young agent didn't immediately reply, but Jack saw her eyes dart quickly to the hall phone before settling back on his face. "Do you need any heavy lifting?" he prompted.

His comment seemed to bring the young woman from her thoughts. "No Colonel, the removal men did all that for me. Right now I'm just sorting out the last of the boxes for the office, sitting room and kitchen." She paused. "Of course you're welcome to help if you like?"

Jack grinned, "Sure."

Flashing the Colonel, a still rather agitated smile, Li quickly took her impromptu guest's coats – busying herself with hanging them up in the closet. When she turned back to them, she had schooled her face to one of pleasant blankness. "Would you like the penny tour?"

* * *

The house was beautiful, Sam thought. The narrow hall opened on one side to reveal a sunken living room, with large windows and a fireplace. Behind that going towards the back of the house was the kitchen area, with a breakfast bar that looked out over the sitting room. The dining area was connected to both the kitchen and the hall, opening via French windows onto the garden, whilst the other side of the house held the two bedrooms, and the bathroom. At the back, tucked behind the garage was a small room Li obviously planned to use as an office if the solid black filing cabinet against one wall, was any indication. Curious Sam made to wander around the room, but Li quickly blocked her path, shutting the door before Sam could walk inside. "Too much mess" was her excuse.

Moving back towards the centre of the house, Li quickly led the group into the basement. Though she knew it was a slightly odd room to include in a tour of the house, Emeline Barnes could not resist. Having never lived in a house with a basement before, the addition was still something of a novelty to her. As they reached the bottom of the stairs, Li flicked the switch that would illuminate the rest of the area. The three people behind her stopped and stared.

The area had been divided up into three sections; the first was a work out area complete with punch bag and treadmill. The second was obviously used for laundry, but the third was what caught their attention. Masses of photography equipment lay everywhere complete with everything needed for a private dark room. Stacked to one side were piles of mounted photographs varying in size. Sam let out a breath, "Wow."

Jack just nodded in agreement whilst Teal'c just stood there, impassive as ever.

Li shrugged almost bashfully, "I couldn't resist using the space, I love photography, but I've never had the room to really set things out the way I wanted before."

"Are you any good?" Jack asked wandering over to the piles of photos.

"I'm alright. I sell most of the pieces I do, but I keep some if I really like them."

Jack picked one up and whistled. It was of a park in the autumn; a girl stood mid way down an avenue of trees. She looked as if she had been captured mid pirouette. She was looking straight at the camera. The whole picture was done in sepia except for her eyes and the blue of the sky.

Back above ground, Sam wandered down into the sitting room and moved over to one of the walls. It was covered in framed photographs; a myriad of different faces at various times and places. A few faces were repeated quite often—a girl with large dark eyes, pale skin and a mass of dark curls, cropped up quite a lot, often accompanied by a boy with blond hair and grey-blue eyes. There was a cluster of photos to the right, which seemed to centre around Li's school days, if the uniforms were anything to go by.

She looked over to the left where a series of frames—each with an accompanying catch phrase were placed. Looking at them, Sam smiled. The photos showed a progression of time and more often than not Li was in these ones. At the top she looked to be about 16 at the bottom 18. In each one, she was smiling or laughing, unless she was striking some sort of ridiculous pose.

The astrophysicists' eyes alighted on one photo in particular. It was a picture of Li sitting on the grass in a park. She was leaning back on her elbows, dressed casually in jeans and a black t-shirt, with a look of polite incredulity on her face. Sam's eyes shifted to the person she was staring at in the photo. It was the girl from the photo in the basement. Younger than Li, her head was thrown back in laughter; hair the colour of charcoal powder rippling with the movement.

A crash from outside brought her sharply back to the present. She ran to the kitchen in time to see Li dart outside shaking her fist at something that was scampering away into the bushes, "Bloody mutated badgers!"

Sam looked quizzically at Jack, who's face was turning odd colours in his attempt not to laugh. Seeing her look of confusion, Teal'c spoke, "I believe Emeline has become aggravated by the inquisitive nature of some of the local wildlife."

Sam frowned, "A raccoon raided her garbage." Jack clarified.

"Oh." Sam said as Li marched back into the house still muttering under her breath. Her eyes wandered back to the pictures on the wall – who were those people, and who did they mean to Emeline?

* * *

The phone rang as they were eating dinner. Li had cooked, whirling around the kitchen with a level of energy to rival that of a toddler. Sam had nearly fallen of her bar stool when Jack had leant over to her and whispered, "That girl makes me feel _old_".

The relaxed and pleasant atmosphere, which had established itself during the day, seemed to vanish as the harsh sound ripped through the kitchen. Li's shoulders immediately tensed, as the colour seemed to fade from her face. With a hurried apology, she quickly excused herself from the table, practically flying down the hall to reach the phone. The three team-members continued to eat in silence, though each was secretly contemplating what it was about one phone call, that could have their host so nervous.

Eventually the indistinguishable murmur of words from the hallway ended, and Li rejoined them. Her face was drawn, and tight but she made no mention of the phone call. The casual atmosphere gradually returned, as Jack put extra effort into lightening the mood – telling worse jokes than normal, and regaling the young agent with SG-1 escapades from before her time.

Gradually the mean drew to a close, by which time even Teal'c was laughing – though none of the others had understood the joke he had told.

As they cleared up Jack said what they had all been thinking, "We should probably go. We're due on base early tomorrow and I've got paperwork to catch up on before then."

Li nodded and moved to get their coats, "I'm glad you guys stopped by. Unpacking is very boring when you do it on your own."

Sam chuckled, "Don't I know it." Li smiled, nodding as she opened the door for them. They filed out, one by one, waving as they walked down the drive. Li stood in the doorway waving as they drove off in Jack's truck. The smile, which had been natural in their presence, quickly become fixed. She sighed; it looked like she was making friends.

* * *

As Daniel looked up from the cup of coffee he had been studying intently, Sam quickly hid her worries behind a mask. She was hear to build bridges, and her own indecision wouldn't help matters. She was brought from her thoughts when Daniel spoke. "Hey Sam, what do you need?" The archaeologist smiled at her, curious as to what had drawn his work-aholic friend from her lab.

Sam smiled in return, easing her way into the office to perch on the stool beside Daniel's. "I was wondering if I could talk to you about something."

A look of concern clouded Daniel's eyes, "Sam is everything OK?"

Realising Daniel thought she wanted to talk about herself Sam hurried to reassure him, "Yes Daniel everything's fine. It's just…"

"Just …?"

"It's about Li." She was hesitant to broach this topic with her friend, as last time the conversation had been less than productive.

Daniel's jaw clenched, "Sam we've had this conversation." A thread of anger was beginning to warm his voice, and he fought not to let his automatic reaction to the young agent show.

Sam hastily lay a placating hand on his arm, "I know, I know. But Daniel I've seen the way you are around her. You're cold. You've never been judgemental before Daniel, so why now? You barely talk to her except to tell her what notes to take." The blond major sighed.

"I know what you think of her Daniel, you told me all about the planet. But the person you see each mission isn't all she is. You never see her laugh, or smile. You cut yourself off from her every time we get back Earth-side. If you'd just _try_ Daniel, you'd see she's more than what you see. She's not just Agent Barnes, she's Li Barnes too. And Li Barnes is a good person, not just good at what she does."

Daniel just shook his head, not meeting his friend's eyes, "Daniel, she's my friend. That should tell you something. And she's Teal'c's friend too. That should tell you more. But what should tell you the most is that she's Jack likes her also." Daniel looked up sharply at the sound of Jack's name, realising Sam did not even know she was using it. "He trusts her Daniel, we all do. And you know he wouldn't trust her unless he thought she deserved it."

Daniel sighed.

"Think about it Daniel. Please?" she asked. Daniel nodded. Sam squeezed his arm gently, smiling at him before she left the room.

Once she had left Daniel leaned heavily on the desk and buried his face in his hands. Could he have been wrong? Was there really more to Emeline Barnes than the cold-faced agent he saw on every mission. Sam certainly thought so. _And she's probably right_.

Daniel sighed. He hoped he still had a chance to salvage some sort of working relationship from the situation, friendship might be asking a bit much though.

* * *

Moonlight shines on the pathway, missing the deeper darkness in the shadows. One shadow, detaches itself from the others, slipping inside a neat white house. It moves from room to room, searching, searching.

It opens the door to the last room, to be greeted by moonlight glinting off of steal, and the sound of a gun hammer being cocked in the darkness. The shadow laughs, a low deep chuckle, intimate in the night.

The gun never wavers, as a silvery form, touched with gold slips forward. "What are you doing here?" a woman's voice, whispered in the night. The room becomes too warm, stifling. The air is stale, old, stripped of the fresh jasmine scent, which had hung in the air moments ago.

There is no answer to the question, only movement, in the now fetid darkness. The shadow leaves. Leaves a young woman, alone and afraid in the darkness.


	5. Chapter 5

**ALL IS FAIR IN LOVE AND WAR**

_Chapter 5 – They only serve_

Dr Daniel Jackson, PhD, walked down the hallways of the SGC muttering to himself. Jack had made him promise to train with him and Teal'c in preparation for the fitness tests coming up and it was only that promise which had forced him to stop translating the new artefact from P2X-569 and leave the sanctuary of his office.

He was torn between cursing Jack and thanking him, he knew his fitness levels weren't the same as the rest of the teams, despite the amount of walking they did on the other side of the Stargate, and he preferred to avoid a lecture from Janet if at all possible. As he neared the fitness room, he could hear a heavy beat thumping out through the walls. Frowning he wondered which of the marines had chosen to work out at the same time SG-1 was scheduled – normally the marines kept to themselves. Swinging into the room, he stumbled to a halt.

There, apparently oblivious to the damage currently being done to her eardrums by the music, was Agent Emeline Barnes. Her hair was pulled up into a severe bun and she was attacking a freestanding punch bag with all her might. Swear poured down her body, falling off her arms and shoulder to splash onto the floor. With each swing of the punch bag, her blows landed with more force, until her arms were a blur of motion, leaving minor dents, which had no time to fill out before she hit again.

As she pulled her arm back for another punch, Daniel noticed that she was not wearing gloves – and hadn't even bothered to tape her knuckles. The skin was raw and bleeding, scraped from where it had made contact with the rough fabric of the bag. On instinct, he reached out to stop her from doing further injury and found himself whipping through the air, as Li yanked him off his feet and over her hip, following the momentum through to pull his wrist into an arm lock. The pressure rapidly increased, until Daniel was afraid she would dislocate his elbow. His face was pushed down into the mats and with Li's knee on the back of his head, he had no way of clearing his mouth to yell at her. He could feel sweat dripping down from her into his hair. He was beginning to wonder if she would suffocate him.

Suddenly, as quickly as she had pinned him, Emeline shot backwards, relieving Daniel of her weight. The young archaeologist heaved to his feet, spinning to glare at the agent.

"What the hell?" Not one to usually swear, anger, pain, and a slight flash of fear prompted Daniel to break his usually calm demeanour.

Agent Barnes did not reply. Looking at her more closely, Daniel could see she was shaking. A fine tremor was building in her arms, vibrating in the fists, which were clenched at her sides. Her eyes were too wide, the whites shown too fully. Watching her, Daniel thought he could see tears mixing with the sweat dripping down her face. Their eyes met. She opened her mouth, closed it again, and fled.

Daniel stayed; frowning at the spot, she had been in until Jack and Teal'c walked in.

* * *

Teal'c sat, eyes closed, feeling the heat of the candles against his skin. These times of meditation were important to him, allowed him to contemplate the Tau'ri world around him, which even now was still strange to him at times. A frown marred his calm features as he remembered the events of earlier that day. He had witnessed a series of strange interactions between Emeline Barnes and DanielJackson. Never on good terms, the two seemed to be avoiding each other more than usual. He had thought from comments made by the archaeologist that he had planned to settle his differences with Agent Barnes, but such a discussion seemed not to have taken place. 

Agent Barnes herself was another area of concern for the Jaffa. Of late, she had been ultra-sensitive to her surroundings. Aware of everyone's presence in a room, and often staying on base over night. This hyper-awareness had led her to aiming a gun at his head when he approached her from behind off-world, and then begging him not tell O'Neill. At the time, he had agreed because he failed to see how this increased awareness was a bad thing. He was now not so sure. The young woman was beginning to jump at shadows. Dark circles were forming under her eyes, and tension shot through whenever her phone rang. Opening his eyes, and gazing down into the dancing flames, Teal'C decided to speak to O'Neill.

* * *

Daniel strode quickly up the gravel path of Emeline Johnson's home. He had debated with himself endlessly as to whether this was the right thing to do, but that had not stopped him coming. For days after the incident in the training room, Daniel had been seething. Who in their right mind attacks people out of the blue like that? But as the days had passed, he had watched her. She was nervous, more than once she had spilt the drink she was holding because her hands had been shaking too badly for her to keep it steady. More than once when he had stopped by her office to request or drop off notes, he had seen her nearly leap out of her seat when the phone rang, and answer it with a look akin to one walking to their own execution. 

He had noticed she was avoiding everyone on the team, even Sam with whom she usually got on quite well. He wondered if he was partially at fault – if her worry at him telling the others about what had happened was starting to affect her performance. At the very least, all he would do is tell her that he hadn't mentioned it to Jack. He knew the dangers of going off-world as well as anyone – everyone needed to be at the top of their game, and right now, Emeline Barnes was not there.

He knocked rapidly on the door, shifting slightly from foot to foot to keep warm. Though the days were still incredibly warm for autumn, the nights were starting to show a chill. He knocked again. Maybe she was not home. But then why were the lights on?

A young voice sounded from behind him, making him turn, "She went running."

Daniel looked at the young girl who stood at the end of the drive. Her hair was pulled up in bunches and she was wheeling a bicycle. "Do you know where?"

The child nodded solemnly pointing to her right, "To the park. She always goes there."

Daniel nodded smiling absently at the child, "Thank you."

Leaving her front door, he ran quickly back to his car.

* * *

Three hours later and Daniel was ready to scream in frustration. He'd been looking for Agent Barnes ever since he had arrived at the park, but he had simply not been prepared for the size of it. 

The temperature had dropped considerably with the setting of the sun, and now a light frost was beginning to creep over the fallen leaves. Daniel sighed and walked down the path towards the lake—the woman was probably home by now but he could not bring himself to return to her house. He realised he did not have a clue what to say. Raising his eyes to look at the lake he sighed.

There stood Li, shoulders rising and falling rapidly as she breathed deeply, her breath was starting to mist in the cool air, steam rising from her body gently. Her hair was damp and what had escaped its restraints was plastered to her face. Daniel guessed she had been running since she got here. Three hours straight. He was surprised she had not done herself an injury. Slowly as if afraid she would bolt if she saw him, Daniel approached her.

She was aware of his presence the moment he stepped from between the trees. He had not seen her yet so she pretended not to notice him, staring out over the glassy lake. Looking at the way the heavens were mirrored in its depths. She saw his reflection, when he noticed her, watched his brow furrow in concern as he watched her, watched him make his way slowly towards her, hands casually in his pockets eyes looking at the hill of trees behind her. He stopped a yard away.

"What do you want Doctor Jackson?" her voice came out harsher than she meant it to, fuelled by bitterness, guilt and self-loathing. She watched him take his hands out of his pockets and fold his arms, turning to face her.

He opened his mouth, but seemed to think better of what he was going to say and closed it again. Eventually he spoke, "Sam's worried about you."

"Really? Why?" Li still was not looking at him. Daniel winced at her tone. Bitterness, laced with sarcasm. She sounded like Jack had when he first met him.

"She cares." he said. He noticed her shake her head out of the corner of his eye. For some reason, it made him angry. "Dammit Emeline." His angry turn seemed to stun her into looking at him. He glared at her. "Sam can see what's going on with you, and she's worried. You're jumpy, not eating, you sleep most nights at the base. Jack and Teal'c have noticed it too. Hell, even I've noticed and I don't _care_ whatyou do."

He turned sharply away, before swinging back to face her. Every grievance, every little thing about her, which angered him, was flooding to the surface, pouring out of his mouth. "In the state you're in, you're a danger to the team. You're too highly strung. If you keep this up, you're going to end up shooting one of us. You've already had a go at attacking me. If you can't handle the pressure Agent, then leave. If the stress is getting to you, go. But do not endanger the people I care about by keeping your head in the clouds. Shape up or ship out."

His last sentence seemed to snap something inside the frozen agent before him. With a snarl, she advanced until she was nearly pressed against him, glaring up into his face.

"When I want you're opinions _Doctor_ Jackson, be assured I will ask for them. Until such time, keep them to yourself." She hissed the words at him, and seemed to be physically restraining herself from spitting in his face. She jerked back sharply from him, backing away until they were feet apart still glaring at each other.

"So you don't care then?" he asked, "You don't care that Sam, Jack and Teal'c are all worried about you?" Internally Daniel berated himself, he had not come here to argue with her.

"You're only meant to care about good people." she practically screamed the words at him, hands flying to her head, wrapping themselves in her hair.

Daniel schooled his face to blankness, " Sam thinks you're a good person."

She laughed then, a high, maniacal laugh that sounded harsh in the still quiet. "Oh Doctor Jackson, you know as well as I do that I am anything _but _a good person. I've done things you can't even begin to imagine, things that would make you physically sick.

"I was raised to believe that all life was sacred that it was a sin against God to kill. And all the time I was growing up I clung to that: the beliefs in heaven and hell and being a good person. But then I grew up Doctor Jackson, and I threw that all away. When my parents died, I clung to the knowledge that they were in heaven because they were good people. I swore to myself I would be someone they could be proud of—someone with morals. I swore to them, and look what happens. A charming man comes my way and I give it all up in a heartbeat. Everything I ever swore, when I stood by their graves, I gave up, to impress him."

Daniel stood there trying to process what she had just told him. But only one thought seemed to make it through. "You're parents are dead?"

He watched as she paled, and he realised that she had not meant to tell him that. He looked on, as she almost seemed to physically gather her composure. "I'll keep your words in mind Doctor Jackson. I will not endanger the team."

Daniel blinked at the change in conversation, unsure of what to say, in the face of such a non sequitur. Finally, he sighed and looked down at the ground. Li took it as her cue to walk away.

* * *

**A/N: I realise there might be some holes in this chapter as far as continuity within the chapter is concerned and possibly within the story as a whole. Bare with me, any such inconsistencies will be explained in the next chapter. Many thanks to readers and reviewers**


	6. Chapter 6

**ALL IS FAIR IN LOVE AND WAR**

_Chapter 6 – To have and to hold_

The blaring of the alarm clock signalled the arrival of the morning to an exhausted Emeline Barnes. Wearily, she opened her eyes and swatted futilely at her nightstand, eventually managing a lucky strike which silence the annoying sound.

Fighting the affects of yet another sleepless night, Li hauled herself out of bed feet tangling gracelessly in her sheets. With a grunt of effort, the young agent stumbled out of her room, allowing muscle memory rather than sight to lead her to the kitchen.

As she made her way mindlessly to the coffee machine, Li became aware of the presence of another person in her kitchen. Whipping around, Li's eyes went wide as they alighted on the person seated at her table. Her hands fumbled at her waist, reaching for a weapon that wasn't there.

Robert Jones smirked in sadistic satisfaction as the woman who had once been his protégé regarded him with a mixture of fear and familiarity.

"You do not seem pleased to see me, my dear." Jones said, pushing himself up from the chair he had been sitting on.

Li tried to press herself further into her kitchen cabinets, reluctant to escape and yet eager to avoid this conversation. She said nothing as the man who had once been her world moved silently towards her. His gloved hand gently traced patters along her cheek and Emeline's eyes fell closed of their own volition. Her body reacted to the warmth of the familiar touch even as her mind screamed for her to flee the danger standing before her.

Since her parents' death, Robert had become her solace – her one escape from a world of pain and isolation. He had offered her the means to protect and support her sister and she had accepted it willingly. She had been flattered and charmed by the attentions of this mysterious and powerful man who had offered her a window into his private realm.

It hadn't been until years later that she realised he was using her. Gradually stripping her of all connection to the outside world so as to create his own personal killing machine. But by then it was too late. She was in love and no power in the world could convince her to betray him.

Slowly her eyes opened, and her heart fractured as she once again saw the malicious delight in his eyes as he revelled in the ease with which he could manipulate her. She let out a choked sob and he placed a finger against her lips, shushing her.

"Quiet dearest." He said. "No need for tears. I only came here for your report. I haven't approached you since you seemed to perturbed by my presence in your room the other night." He gently led the young woman to one of the kitchen chairs, crouching in front her as she collected herself. "There now. See? You're alright. Now, since it is clear my presence is so distressing to you, I will simply take the report and go."

Li gulped, and took a deep steadying breath. She had no intention of righting that report – had intended to blame a mail carrier for its absence – now, she was forced to lie.

"I have not yet finished it, Sir." She said. Her eyes fixed steadily, on the point of the wall visible just over Jones's shoulder. Beside her, she felt Jones sigh, disappointment evident in the gesture even as one hand rested tenderly on her knee.

"Very well," he stated, "I will take what you have managed to complete."

"No Sir." The words had left her mouth even before she meant to say them. Rapidly, her mind hummed in an attempt to contrive some sort of reasonable excuse as to why, for the first time ever, she had refused to obey him.

"No Sir?" Jones asked. His voice was soft, heavy with disbelief, but with the barest hint of warm anger underneath. Li forced her pulse to remain at a steady pace, compelled her fingers not to scrunch into nervous fists as she gave her reply.

"I could not bear the thought of providing you with substandard work," she murmured turning to him with a beseeching gaze. "It is bad enough that I didn't finish the report on time, please do not make me submit a report that has not be completed. I would not wish to disappoint you further." Demurely, she lowered her gaze to her lap, the picture of repentant youth.

Jones regarded her with a careful look. He stayed silent so long that Li raised her eyes to meet his gaze. The moment she did, she felt her mask falter and Jones's mouth quirked in a cynical smile.

"That was very nice, _cherie_." He said, laughter colouring his tone. "You very nearly had me fooled." He stood and moved towards the door, Li's eyes watching him fearfully from where she sat. At the door he halted and looked back over his shoulder.

"Your loyalty to your new comrades in commendable Agent Barnes," he whispered, "but foolish. We both know that this rebellion is temporary, a product of my absence. In time you will find yourself as willing to comply with my demands as you ever were and this reluctance to betray to SGC will pass. Besides," he paused, "no amount of loyalty in the world will save you in their eye should they discovered the role you played in the death of your sister."

Seeing a rare flash of anger snap behind his protégé's eyes, Jones smiled. "Each member of your team has suffered a great loss in their lifetime. Dr Jackson lost both his parents, Major Carter her mother, Colonel O'Neill his son. Even that Jaffa, Teal'c, is separated from his family. Do you really think they will react well to the knowledge that you helped murder your own sister?"

The confidence Emeline had initially felt in her actions quickly drained from her, leaving her as broken and yielding as she had been before leaving MI6. She looked away, and didn't turn her head again until she heard the closing of the front door.

* * *

Daniel smothered a yawn as he ambled into his office, customary cup of coffee in hand. On his desk lay the nearly complete translation he had abandoned in favour of sleep the night before. As he placed his mug down on the edge of his workspace, Daniel paused. The translation had been difficult and he knew he should review it with a fresh eyes but his work load was phenomenal and he simply was not sure if he had the time.

Sighing he picked up a file containing both the original text and his translation and headed back out the door. He had not spoken to Agent Barnes since that afternoon by the lakeside but if there were the slightest chance that her workload was significantly less than his, he would brave what promised to be an awkward conversation to ask for her help.

Reaching Agent Barnes's office, Daniel leant against the doorjamb as he surveyed the scene before him. The young woman had her back to him, apparently peering at something that he couldn't see.

"Hi." He said. Emeline let out a muffled shriek of fright and whipped around to face him. Coffee splashed in a scalding wave across her hand and wrist but she barely seemed to notice, despite the fact that the liquid continue to steam even after hitting her skin. She was shaking and she was staring at him with a mixture of horror and relief.

All this, Daniel registered in the space of seconds, before he was moving grabbing a bottle of water that had been left on a bookcase and popping the cap off. Pushing back the young agent's sleeve, Daniel proceeded to poor the water over her hand and wrist. Though the water was nowhere near cold enough to provide an effective treatment the archaeologist hoped that it would at least forestall _some_ of the burning process.

"Dr Jackson I-" Li started only to break off with a gasp as Daniel gently probed the affected area of skin.

"We should have Janet take a look at this." He said, instinctively sliding an arm around Emeline's back whilst he guided her from the office and down the halls of the SGC. Passing personal raised their eyebrows at the site, knowing how rare it was for the two SG-1 Egyptologists to willingly stay in the same room as each other let alone walk in such close proximity.

"I didn't mean to startle you." Daniel murmured as the two stepped into the elevator. "Especially not this badly." From where he had his arm wrapped around her and where he still gingerly held her scalded wrist, Daniel could feel Emeline trembling slightly.

"It's fine." The young woman murmured. Her voice was hoarse and thick as though she had been crying before Daniel met her. Glancing at her face and seeing her slightly red and swollen eyes, the archaeologist wondered if maybe that assumption was not so far from the truth.

"Did something happen?" he probed gently. Looking at the agent now, Daniel thought he was beginning to understand what Sam had meant about the difference between Li Barnes and Agent Barnes. The woman standing beside him was nothing like the cold and calculating agent who served with SG-1 off-world. Instead he was faced with a young woman, who for all she had seen, in some ways was very much a child. He remember her accidental revelation of her parents' deaths and wondered just how much else this woman had suffered to carve such a rift in her personality.

Emeline said nothing, but simply shook her head, eyes fixed on a space of floor several inches before her feet.

Their arrival at the infirmary boasted no signs of Dr Frasier, but they were greeted by a nurse who quickly assessed and dressed the burn - which had been much deeper than Daniel had expected - and advised applying vitamin e to the wound, to prevent scarring.

Throughout it all, Agent Barnes remained detached as though the words and events were being directed to someone else entirely. The nurse, whose badge read Prvt. Marts, voiced her concerns over shock, but Emeline assured her she was fine – managing to sound coherent enough to be convincing – before she made a quick departure from the infirmary.

Even after her exit, Daniel remained where he was, frowning as he contemplated just what was making Emeline Barnes deteriorate from the confident woman he had looked forward to working with to one who jumped at the sight of her own shadow.

* * *

**A/N:** I apologise for the tremendous time it took to update this fic and for the shortness of the chapter. Horrific writer's block regarding this fic meant a rather substantial delay unfortunately. I did try to proof read but chances are I missed things so apologies for that also. As always reviews and criticisms are appreciated.


End file.
